Five killed as plane skids off runway and catches fire in Ukraine

At least five people have been killed after a passenger plane carrying football fans skidded off the runway and burst into flames at Donetsk's Serhiy Prokofiev International Airport in the Ukraine.

The Antonov AN-24 plane is reported to have been carrying more than 49 people and was an internal charter flight from the Black Sea tourist resort of Odessa.

The plane was operated by the small Southern Airlines company, which mostly runs domestic flights out of Odessa.

According to the Guardian, regional officials confirmed the twin-engine turboprop was mainly carrying supporters travelling to a Champions League football match in Donetsk, between Shakhtar Donetsk and Germany's Borussia Dortmund.

The match opened with a minute's silence in memory of those who died.

The aircraft attempted to make an emergency landing, but overshot the runway and came to rest about 700m (2,300ft) away, before catching fire.

Twelve people were injured in the accident, and five lost their lives.

According to the BBC, one passenger told Ukraine's Kanal 5 TV: "We collided with the ground, then the plane opened up like a tin can.

"Thanks to the crack that formed in the fuselage, we were able to get out of the plane before it caught fire."

The survivors were later taken by bus to the airport, and an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the crash.

Preliminary reports have indicated the plane may have suffered engine failure upon landing.

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How do they get away with this stupidity which is supposed to pass as journalism?Who pays their enormous undeserved salaries?Do they actually admit to anybody what they do for a living?Do they care that they are just childish so called adults in non jobs?WILL SOMEBODY PLEASE BLOW THE LID ON THIS NONSENSE AND GET THEM OUT OF THEIR POSITIONS NOW,IT SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED.Yes this is a rant,a well deserved one.

oooooo i can write on here [banned from huufy posty ] and my comments no worse than loads of others wrote twice to them NO REPLY baaaaaad ppl huff WHY DONT THEY SELL UP AND AOL GO BACK AS IT WAS HUFFS CRAP ANYWAY very poor journalists

Yet again aol reporting according too!!!!!! x and x again (if you do not have the facts then keep quite ), but please aol/huffpost tell the story with out using another media sorce, so pathetic and not professional, you are giving us storys we have already read in the dailys before you decide to put on your cr*p site

At least five people were killed when a plane carrying supporters to a European soccer match in eastern Ukraine overshot the runway and broke up when it attempted an emergency landing late on Wednesday, officials said.The twin-engines Antonov turboprop was bringing 45 passengers and crew on a charter flight from the Black Sea coastal city of Odessa to Donetsk - most of them fans looking forward to attending a Champions League clash between the Ukrainian home team Shakhtar and Germany's Borussia Dortmund.The emergencies ministry, quoted by Interfax news agency, said the aircraft overshot the landing strip at Donetsk airport which an eyewitness said was shrouded in thick fog at the time. It overturned and broke up.Apart from the five people confirmed dead, 12 others had been injured, the ministry said.Andriy Shyshatsky, head of Donetsk's regional administration speaking before a fifth dead was confirmed, said the majority of passengers had been saved."One person is visible in the wreckage, but we don't yet know whether he is alive or not. We are searching for one other person," Shyshatsky told journalists.An airport source quoted by Interfax said a stewardess who had been at the rear of the plane was unaccounted for.A minute of silence was observed for the dead at the start of the Champions League match.There was no immediate word on why the flight crew had had to make an emergency landing. But a survivor of the crash, quoted by Interfax, said there had been a fire on board which had been brought under control.

A South Airlines Antonov AN-24, registration UR-WRA performing charter flight YG-8971 from Odessa to Donetsk (Ukraine) with 44 passengers and 8 crew, was on final approach to Donetsk's runway 08 at 18:09L (16:09Z) when the aircraft rolled sharply to the right and impacted the ground off the runway twice, the right hand engine burst into flames, the aircraft spun right and came to a stop on soft ground to the right of runway and parallel taxiway, the occupants were evacuated through holes and cracks, emergency services quickly put out the fire. 47 people survived the accident, 5 people are confirmed dead, 9 people were taken to hospitals, 26 received medical attention.

On Feb 14th Ukraine's Emergency Ministry reported five fatalities, 9 people were taken to hospitals with injuries as result of the accident. 47 survivors of the 52 occupants of the aircraft have been confirmed. The ministry had originally reported the aircraft overran the end of the runway and overturned and on Feb 14th changed to state, that the aircraft lost control during final approach, fell left of the runway and split in two major parts.

Sources at Donetsk Airport reported the aircraft performed an emergency landing.

Ukraine's Transport Prosecution Office reported a fire broke out while the aircraft made an incorrect landing, the fire was contained by emergency services 20 minutes later.

Ground observers reported the aircraft was attempting to land in dense fog and touched down on soft ground between main runway and taxiway, other observers reported the aircraft touched down short of the runway on soft ground.

An observer on the flight deck, pilot trainee, reported the aircraft was on final approach to the runway in dense fog when the aircraft impacted ground twice, the right hand engine caught fire and the aircraft spun to the right.